12.08.25
ABSTRACT ARTWORK: NOT JUST FORMS AND SHAPES
posted by Augustus J Caelthorne
Abstract Art - The Essence of Symbolism and Artistic Communication
In a spiritual place, the essence of abstract art invites you to experience presence rather than relying on explanation.
Mysteries and the hidden meanings of things have always captivated me. Understanding that not everything we carry can be neatly named is the foundation of my life, work, and calling through The Lady Isabel Foundation and The House of Caelthorne. Our joy, grief, and ancestral longing are not always linear. They glow, they ache, they swirl. Abstract art's defiance of this is honored by fixed representation and chromatic symbolism
I don't strive for accuracy when I create abstract art. Truth is what I'm after: spiritual, symbolic, and emotional truth. A reality that is sensed before it is comprehended. A truth that comes to light in the silent times when words fail.
See my latest abstract artwork available here: Caelthorne Art Online Gallery
Abstract Art: One of The Oldest Languages
Many people believe that abstraction is a recent development, a revolt against form. However, it is among the oldest languages. Abstraction abounds in African artistic traditions: ceremonial markings that call forth ancestors, woven patterns that contain spiritual codes, and sacred symbols in stone. The purpose of these forms was never to merely "look good." They had a purpose. They served as portals.
In this way, my abstract paintings are an extension of that holy ritual. It's not disconnected from history—it is infused with it. The use of fragmented symmetry and layered washes are two of my recurrent themes. I frequently combine expressive mixed-medium materials with delicate organic topics. This is deliberate. It reflects the conflict between tradition and modernity, between the self and society, and between the known and the unknown. It captures the very conflict I experience as an artist juggling collective trauma, personal memory, and hopeful vision.
Past, Process... Power
My process has a strong sense of ritual as well. I don't just create when I feel like it. I approach every piece with a sense of reverence. I take a specific personal past experience, coupled with a narrative and then juxtapose with abstract expressionism. My studio turns into a vessel, and the canvas, an altar.
I apply layers of charcoal, pencil, ink and acrylic paint. I bury colors with a monochrome approach, bring textures back to life, smooth, scratch, and then scar once more. It's not a show. It's an excavation of the soul. I'm looking for an emotional resolution in addition to a visual one. A spiritual one at times.
When people stand in front of my work, they frequently ask, "What does this mean?" I don't provide solutions. I give room. The purpose of abstract art is not to dictate meaning. It's about encouraging introspection. What you see is not as important to me as what it makes you feel.
My latest artwork "I Forgot I Had a Name": Caelthorne Art Online Gallery
I have seen firsthand how abstraction can help people uncover hidden emotions through The Lady Isabel Foundation. Through our therapeutic art initiatives, survivors colors and shapes are frequently the starting point for conflicts and displacement. No numbers. Not a scene. Simply emotion. Simply move. And something significant—a reckoning, a remembering, a reclaiming—emerges from that chaos.
The silent wonder of abstract art is that it frees people from the limitations of language to express their truth. It creates room for the unimaginable. We regain the power to define our inner worlds through abstract art. to create brand-new myths. to declare, "This is how I see it," whatever "it" may be. I feel this way. I live this way.
Additionally, abstract art is timeless. Unlike representational work, it does not age. It appeals to the soul, and the soul doesn't notice trends. It talks about pain, and pain is timeless. It talks about transcendence, which is maybe what art was always supposed to do.
Caelthorne Art - The Art of Abstract Artwork
There are a lot of works on my Online Art Gallery that are difficult to understand. This is intentional. Not all of my collectors are looking for pieces that go with their furniture. They are looking for a piece that reflects their personality. A work they can keep coming back to because it keeps challenging, comforting, and changing them, not because it's cozy. A soul touching experience on different levels every time.
Some individuals will consistently reject abstract art because they believe it to be too ambiguous, extravagant, or unapproachable. Permit them. I don't create art for people who are cynical. I create for the purpose of seeking. For the spiritual. For people who realize that not everything that is important can be neatly labeled.
Abstract art is ultimately an invitation. A colored question. A hymn written in the form of a shape. A mirror that is not part of the external world, but of the internal one.
I will thus keep creating, honoring, and remembering in the language that selected me. The invisible language. The spirit's language.
The language of abstraction and mixed-medium.
With love,
A
Website: https://caelthorne.art/
For press enquiries: caelthornepress@outlook.com
For The Lady Isabel Foundation: theladyisabelfoundation@outlook.com
For a commission, or interest in one of my artworks: caelthorneart@outlook.com
